Suddenly
by Cloud-of-Dreams
Summary: Trouble has a way of catching up with you, even if it doesn't appear that way. This is true, the turtles know it well. Sometimes trouble can also come when aiding another, or aiding another can be trouble. Which one is it?
1. Exploding Rice?

Suddenly

A/N: Alright, let's see this is probably going to be my first attempt at a TMNT story, especially since this is supposed to be a long-going story. Now, here is the first chapter, so enjoy.

TMNT © Mirage

**01: Exploding Rice?**

"_Boil water for ten minutes, then soak for another fifteen minutes_," Leonardo stood there, skimping as he read over the small print of instructions. He needed to get this right, if he didn't he'd _never_ hear the end of it and that was one thing he didn't need. "Heh, seems easy enough," the young turtle spoke to himself before setting the box on the counter, gathering up whatever he would need.

Now what was this turtle doing exactly? Well, simply he was making dinner for his family. It was suppose to be a kind gesture for all of them to sit down and just relax after all that had taken place. Leo thought it was a good idea at the time of course he'd never known how much work he'd actually have to put into it.

"Alright, so I got the water boiled, now what?" Leo stood there for a moment, attempting to remember what the box said.

"Was it soak or cook the rice?" the turtle didn't really have much of an idea, he was pretty sure a certain _other_ turtle would have no probably with this, but he wasn't about to ruin his surprise just yet.

Leo didn't really know what he should have been doing, he paused to think it over before coming to the best solution. "Of course! I need to cook the rice." And with that the young turtle extended his hands out as he scooped the rice before dropping it onto a pan to begin cooking.

It didn't take very long for Donatello's fire alarm to start blaring, alerting the others of a potential fire that was about to occur.

Michelangelo had been seated on the top of the couch, attempting to best his hot-headed brother in video games when the alarm blared. Mikey was _very_ startled by this, falling backwards off the sofa and onto the floor with a loud _Thud! _Raphael would have more than likely laughed at the scene if his ears weren't ringing from that accursed sound.

Donatello had been busy working away in his lab, doing an extremely dangerous experiment that needed his utter concentration.

He had just only to squeeze single drop from the medicine dropper and his experiment would be complete, that was until-_BUZZZZZ!_

The second that alarm went off, Donatello's experiment was ruined. He squeezed too much of the liquid and an unfortunate explosion happened soon afterwards.

Master Splinter was the only one who didn't seem to suffer from the sound. He had simply been meditating when the sound filled the lair, breaking the Master's concentration. Master Splinter just sighed as he rose to his feet and entered the lair with a headache soon to follow.

"Leo! What'd ya do?!" Raph yelled the second he entered into the kitchen, looking just utterly surprised. Mikey had followed quickly after his brother, immediately he burst into laughter at the sight he saw.

Leonardo stood there, a look of absolute annoyance appearing across his face. Never had he had such a hate for rice, especially burned rice.

The eldest turtle was covered from head to toe in rice, the food somehow exploding on him and covering the entire front half of his body.

Raph was still speechless while Mikey laughed on, unable to keep himself standing as he fell to the floor clutching his stomach.

Master Splinter had came into the kitchen, quite unsure of what to make of the situation. "What in the world has happened my sons?" questioned there Master, eyeing Leonardo curiously.

"Yeah bro, what's with the rice? It'd explode on ya or somethin?" Raph asked between small snorts of laughter once he finally snapped out of his shock. "Ha Ha Haaaa! He...the rice...Ahhahahah!" Mikey was very amused with what happened, this evident with his laughing fit. He didn't think anything else was possibly even funnier, but something else was.

Master Splinter stood there, an odd scent drifting in. He lifted his nose up, sniffing the air to try and find where the odd smell was coming from. The more he sniffed the closer the smell came, just what was it? Master Splinter paused as the smell got stronger and surprisingly stinker. He pitched his nose in order to keep himself from smelling that scent any longer.

"Oh man, what's that smell?" Raph asked as he spun around, trying to find the location of the smell. His expression changed from that of a disgusted one to one of amusement.

He found his smell and couldn't help but laugh at it.

"What? What's so-Ahhahahah!" Mikey sat up, looking to see why his brother was laughing only to end up laughing himself. There standing in front of them was another mess, Donatello to be exact. Donny stood there, his face covered completely in smoke. It looked as if something had exploded on him and he didn't enjoy it. "Which one of you bozos set off the alarm?" Don asked as he crossed one arm over the other, looking ticked off.

"Ask Leo," Raph replied as he stepped aside to allow his brother to get a better view of the mess that was conjured up. Leo turned his head to gaze at Don and his brother gazed back, neither one seeming particularly happy. Raph and Mikey were laughing their heads off at their brothers disasters, leaving Master Splinter with a slight headache.

"That's it. Leo you're ban from cooking ever _again._" Leo sighed, he tried to do something nice and only ended up with a bigger mess than necessary. Next time he was going to let Mikey cook, at least he didn't _explode_ rice.

Being outside at night was probably his favourite thing besides video games or comic book. He was able to go from roof to roof scanning the city just for fun and having no worries. Sure that's _usually _how it ended up being but Mikey had bigger things to worry about.

"Man, how did _I_ get stuck with pizza duty?" the youngest turtle grumbled as he jumped from the ledge of one roof to the other. "I didn't blow up the kitchen or part of the lair." Mikey paused for a moment as he felt something wet fall on his head.

"Huh? Wha?" He looked up at the sky with dismay. The clouds were an odd grey and seemed to be growing more violent in appearance. "Ah man! Rain?! The pizza's gonna get soaked and me too!" Mikey whined as he hopped to the next building. He sighed, today just wasn't his day first Raph had beat him in their game, then his dinner got burned and finally he was stuck getting his new dinner while it rained, could it get any worse?

"STOP! Get back here!!" Mikey had stopped altogether when he heard someone yelling from below. "Quick! Catch the kid or boss'll have our heads!"

The turtle gazed down, somewhat confused. Some thugs ran down the narrow alleyway chasing after what appeared to be some kid. "Man, can't these guys pick another day to be evil."

With a heavy sigh the orange-clad turtle jumped down, ready to save some helpless civilian.

Well...that was the first chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. I worked all day to get this done right and hopefully I did. It's not very long but still has some action to last.

I did my best to make sure every character was well, in character. Please do tell me and any of them seemed off, this was my first attempt and I tried to get it right. Also I don't know if Leo is actually a bad chef, I'm just assuming he is. Please do say if he isn't. Right rate and review please! Ciao!


	2. Savoir in the Shadows

**A/N:** Alright, two reviews! I thought I might not get any! Guess I was wrong and thanks to those who reviewed you all get a free cookie!

-Throws free cookies _ninja style_-

Anyways back to the task at hand, sorry it took sooo long to post I was just overwhelmed with school-I mean seriously I had at least one test every day, fun right? FYI the turtles may seem a little OOC, because I had plot bunny and it needed to be set free!

Well, to clear any confusion this story is based off the 2003 series storyline, meaning the turtles are mostly the same age throughout (Fifteen to sixteen I believe, correct me if I'm wrong.) If you have any other questions don't be afraid to ask, I'll answer them to the best of my abilities. Now then, on-word with the story! (Also kudos to anyone who figures out where I got the toaster and fire idead from.)

TMNT © Rightful Owners

* * *

**02: Savoir in the Shadows**

A pizza run, that's all it was supposed to be, _nothing more._ It wasn't supposed to rain, nor was Michelangelo supposed to be the one to get the pizza. No, what he _should_ have been doing was beating Raph in order to get even for his lost game from before, but _no_ he had to fetch the food if he was to eat.

Mikey sighed as he gazed down, eyeing the small group of thugs that seemed to be chasing after some kid. What was even the point? He wasn't too sure but he knew he needed to help that poor kid.

"Well, here goes nothing!" The ninja turtle jumped down, landing on the fire escape. He slowly peered over the metal rail, watching as the thugs rounded the corner and headed towards the kid. Mikey knew that corner was a dead end meaning he needed to book it.

As quick as he could be, Mikey hopped on the railing, jumping off and landing on top of one of the thugs. "Gawh!" The unsuspecting male yelled as two feet smashed into his back, causing him to fall head first into the ground. Mikey immediately rose off the male as two more thugs came back, slowly hiding himself in the shadows.

"Hey, what's all the yellin' bout?" One of the large, more muscular men stepped forward in the direction of the unconscious male. He looked down at his buddy, noticing he was out of it. "Yo, you alrite?" He asked as he shook the male with no success.

Mikey looked over with a smile, this was _too_ easy.

"Hey, he aint movin!"

"Whaa? Whadyaa mean '_aint_ _movin_'?"

"I mean he's out cold!"

"Wha? How-_Gaah_!" In an instant the smaller male was yanked into the shadows, quickly followed by the sound of smashing weapons. "No! Back-_**Arrgghh**_!"

The thug fell forward, his face all bruised and his wooden bat smashed. The other guy became very worried at that point. He got to his feet, pulling up his metal pipe. He scanned around him, cautious of what might come. "I-I know your there! Show yourself freak!" He yelled waving the pipe around him, hoping to hit the hidden attacker. "Well if you want me tooooo!" Mikey jumped out from behind the male, waving his hand at the paranoid thug, "Howdy!"

"Aaaaahhhhh! M-Monster TURTLE!" The guy spun around, throwing his pipe to the ground as he ran away cowardly. Mikey looked over snickering as the thug fell a few times, immediately rising without care and screaming like a little school girl.

"Ha ha ha! Man that was _way _too easy!" The turtle laughed a little more, almost forgetting his task at hand or would have had it not been for a distant scream that followed.

"Oh man! The kid!!" Mikey broke into a sprint as he turned, hoping to make it to the kid in time.

* * *

It was too late. _Too late._ The kid knew it, just _knew _it.

He'd been chased for more than half the night, trying to avoid his captors. But why they were even chasing him was a mystery. He didn't even know what he did to annoy them, he didn't remember even seeing these men at all, but now he had to 'pay the price' as the head thug told him.

And that's what had happened. He paid, but not with money or anything of value, rather his own _pain._

_This is it...I'm done for. _He was lying there on the ground, his body aching in pain. He didn't know exactly what had happened. They hit him a couple of times, knocking the wind out of him on the last punch. He couldn't yell, couldn't scream, couldn't even whimper for help, he had no breath left too. _I'm finished..._

"Well, well. Thought you could outrun us after all that happened, eh kid?" The man spoke, his words seemed faded to the boy though. The kid raised his head up just slightly, his vision barely focused at this point, everything just blurring. The man bent down, a cocky smirk visible on his face. He extended his hand out, lightly lifting the boy's head a bit more. His face was well hidden underneath that red hood, the man barely able to make out much of his features. He could see his eyes, one closed in intense pay, the other just barely open. "Too bad it has ta end like this kid; you coulda had a real nice life too. Maybe you coulda worked for me, _maybe._" The man dropped the kid's head, a hefty laugh escaping his throat.

It was too late. He was done for and there was nothing anyone could do for him now. "J-Ju..st...e-end it...al-alri-ght..!" the kid whispered, his words slurring as he spoke. Everything was fading, the colourful world he once knew was beginning to look bleak, just like his luck. What an odd coincidence.

"Hey! Don't you know its not nice to pick on a kid?" The boy paused, another voice joining in. He didn't recognise it, not at all. The thug was caught off guard by this, spinning around as he whipped his gun forward, nervously looking around him.

He seemed distraught, uncertain of what to do. The boy looked over as that same voice spoke again, words barely audible to him at this point. The boy knew that whatever that voice had said definitely ticked off the goon as he began to turn the corner, planning on handling that person.

The kid felt his eyelids become heavier, the young boy unable to keep focused much longer. He was however able to see an odd blur of orange and green before darkness became his world.

* * *

Tap. Tap. Tap.

The foot moved up and down impatiently, repeatedly smacking against the top of the coffee table with very little care.

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

The speed of the tapping seemed to increase more and more as the owner of the foot became even more impatient.

_**Tap. Tap. Tap.**_

At this point the tapping was out of control, not only was the foot smacking the table with full force it also was irritating the few people nearby.

_**Tap. Ta**_—

"Will you **knock it off**!?" Obviously Donatello was not very pleased with his brother's tapping, in fact he found it quite distracting making it much harder for him to redo his experiment that Leonardo had so _rudely_ destroyed in his attempt to make dinner. "I need to finish this _in peace!_"

Raphael seemed to be equally annoyed, huffing as he rose to his feet to please his brother and not have to take his rarely seen rath later. "Thank you," was the last sound made before the lair became suddenly silent, not even a mouse could be heard, and they lived in a sewer!

Raph growled at the newfound silence, he disliked it so. He knew it would last on like this until Mikey returned and who knew when that was going to happen. The red-clad turtle huffed once more before heading over to the kitchen to salvage what food they had left.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

_Rice, exploding rice...Is that even possible? _Leo had been forced much to his dismay to clean out the kitchen after he practically ruined it. The eldest turtle was now bent over, washing the floor with a rag and bucket. He felt just like Cinderella, now all he needed was an ugly stepsister and he'd be complete.

"Yo, Head Chef done cleaning up or planning on explodin' some more food?"

Well, looked like Leo had an ugly stepsister after all. Leo turned his gaze up, glaring at his brother with much hatred. "No, I'm not done nor do I plan to _cook _again," he spoke with a very annoyed tone, turning as he resumed his work.

"Too bad, I was hopin' you could explode Mikey's comics." Leo turned to face Raph with another glare. "Oh, Ha ha, so funny," he spoke dryly before turning for a second time to finish working. "Really, I mean it...maybe," Raph laughed as he saw Leo turn around, his eye twitching at this point. He was doing a very good job of annoying his brother.

"Raph why don't you go bug Don, or watch some TV, or even take this opportunity to ruin Mikey's room--I don't care _what_ you do, as long as you _do _leave. _Now._" Raph laughed at Leo once again, this time standing still as he saw both eyes twitch, obviously someone couldn't handle a joke...or three. Raph just smirked as Leo began to grow more furious, his face looking redder than before. Leo didn't want Raph there and he knew why, Leo was ashamed of the fact that he exploded rice.

"You know I'd love to go see Don but he's all busy with his nerdy stuff meanin' I'm ban from TV till he's done. Annnnd, destroying Mikey's stuff ain't no fun when he's not around sooo...I guess you're stuck with me bro."

"AGGGHHHH!" Raph smiled his biggest smile, trying to hold back his laughter as Leo let out a frustrated yell, whipping his rag against the toaster with rage. It wasn't really this that broke Raph into laughter; rather it was what happened next. Somehow, just somehow the most random thing possible happened; the toaster caught on fire.

Yes, it spontaneously burst into flames.

The second this happened a chain reaction began.

Leo had stood there dumbfounded, not sure whether to panic or try to understand how that had happened. Raph broke into laughter the second it started, covering his mouth as he tried to keep himself from breaking into anymore giggles.

Leo at this point panicked, looking for something to dose to the flame out with. His eyes landed on the bucket beside him. He reached over yanking the handle before throwing the water on the toaster, the fire immediately dying. Leo let out a sigh as Raph stopped laughing long enough to see the fire doused. "Leo, that was too funny. I'm surprised to fire alarm didn't go off."

It was literally a second later when the fire alarm _did_ go off, ringing like crazy startling all who didn't know of the toaster fire. A sudden explosion was heard from the lair, one that caused the ground to shake. Raph and Leo looked at each other with confused expressions, unsure of what had just occurred. It was until a very loud, very frustrated yell told the brothers everything.

"_**LEEOOOOOO!!!"**_

Leo just stood there, dumbfounded. He brought his hand up, smacking himself in the forehead as he let out a very long, very tired moan. Raph just walked up to his brother, laying a hand on his shoulder as he smirked. It was then when an odd _pop_ was heard and Raph turned, eyes wide as the toaster caught on fire, _again._

"Uh...Leo the--"

"I know Raph...I _know._"


	3. Lost and Found

A/N: So, yay Christmas is tomorrow! Who isn't happy, cause I am! Anyways here's another chapter as my Christmas gift. It's short I know but the next one will be longer I promise!

Anyways the toaster catching on fire was an idea I got from the show iCarly. On it the main character's older brother is an artist and somehow always catches something on fire, and I mean _everything._

Also to anyone who can figure out where I got Don's "uh, silly" line from gets to pitch an idea for a scene in the next chapter. Ciao and happy holidays!

TMNT © Rightful Owners

* * *

**03: Lost and Found**

It wasn't possible, it just wasn't possible. No matter how much he tried to piece together the situation, it just made no sense.

"So, let me get this straight. You threw a rag at the toaster, why?"

"Raph was annoying me, I became frustrated."

"Alright, then the toaster just burst into flames."

"Yes, it did."

"Are you sure perhaps it was something else that caused the fire."

"No, Don. _It just caught on fire_."

"But Leo, it makes no--"

"_I know_ it makes no sense, but it _just happened_!" Leonardo slammed his fist against the wooden table, startling his brother.

Donatello wasn't able to make heads or tails of the situation. He tried the best he could, but none of it made _any_ sense! How could a toaster possibly catch on fire from the simplest throw of a rag? It was utter nonsense!

Raphael was smirking his grand ol' smirk, too pleased with how everything had happened. Who knew Leo would start a fire without trying? Raph just smirked more at this, unable to help himself as he found it to be all too hilarious. "Listen, Don I'm telling you it just spurted fire, I don't know what else to say," the leader spoke with a heavy sigh.

Things just weren't going too well for him that day—no, the past week. "Leo, I want to believe you, it just sounds, uh, silly!" Donny spoke, standing up as he decided to examine the toaster a bit more. He was going to be bugged all day until he knew the cause of the fire, though he guessed it had _something_ to do with the exploding rice.

As Don walked over, snatching the broken toaster in his arms, Leo had decided to go and work on his kata in order to distract his mind. Raph was now the lone turtle remaining in the kitchen with, once again, _nothing _to do_._

* * *

He needed to move, _fast._ If he didn't who knew what would become of the kid. Mikey was running like a maniac on fire, his legs burning with that he never felt before. However he couldn't stop, not _once._ The kid was badly injured and needed medical attention _now._

"Come on kid, hold on," the youngest turtle begged as he pushed himself a little more, his legs crying out in pain that he chose to ignore. He couldn't stop, not now. He needed to save this kid, otherwise who knew what was going to happen.

"Come on, just a little further!" Mikey saw it, he saw the wall with the pipes, he saw the place that lead to his home.

In hast he pulled every single pipe, not able to remember which one opened to reveal the keypad.

By some sheer, very _dumb_ luck Mikey found the fight pipe the keypad appearing, however not fast enough for his liking.

"Come on, come _on_," he groaned, patiently waiting for the wall to open after he practically smashed the buttons. Slowly, but surely the walls pulled apart, opening to allow Mikey access to his home once again. "Yes!"

Mikey was a blur of orange and green, his legs were at this point numb, all feeling left in them gone. He did make it through into the lair, but not without crashing into someone first.

* * *

Tap._ Clank. __**Smash!**_ No matter what he had done, he wasn't able to figure out the cause of the random fire.

Donatello sighed as he leaned back in his chair, shoving aside the broken toaster. He knew, he _knew_ that he'd now have to rebuild the toaster as this one did _not _seem repairable.

"Great, just great," the intelligent turtle moaned, extending his arm as he reached for some notebook lying beside him. "Alright, let's see," he quickly flipped through the pages, looking for the projects he had been working on. He managed to find the page and let out a _long_ sigh. He knew he'd have to do _a lot_ to make a new toaster, especially one from scratch.

"Great, now I have to delay most of my other plans," Donatello reached for a pencil before flipping to a fresh page and scribbling down what he needed to do. After reading through his list once the turtle bent over, snatching up his duffel bag before leaving the comfort of his makeshift lab.

As Donatello walked, his focus was currently on going topside. He had failed to notice someone tailing behind him.

"Raph, I can see you," So it would appear he _did_ see his brother. Raph slowly walked forward, making himself visible from behind the pillar.

"Wasn't trying to hide myself bro."

"Sure you weren't," And with that Donny turned and headed in the direction of the lair's elevator. He needed to gather his stuff otherwise they wouldn't have a toaster period. "So, whatcha doing now?" Don paused, debating whether or not to answer his brother. "Stuff."

"What 'stuff'?"

"Just stuff Raph, nothing you'd care about."

"You sure? I might wanna tag along."

At this point Don had stopped walking all together, his faced showing an odd array of emotions, the most visible confusion, "Are you _really_ that bored?"

Raph said nothing at first, appearing as if Don was right. He smirked, turning towards the door as he planned to leave. Raph scowled as he crossed his arms, turning away from Don, "Maybe..."

Don sighed, shaking his head as he outstretched his arm telling Raph to follow him. The elder turtle began to walk in his brother's direction before the door behind him opened followed by a very loud _crash!_

"Gaahah!"

"Ooowww! Raph?"

"Mikey!? What why'd you--"

"Can't talk!"

"Mikey what are you—Oof!" It was at this point that Mikey had scrambled to his feet, knocking Raph over in the process. "Mikey! Why I outta--"

"Sorry!" Mikey yelled back before dashing over to Don, half breath half panting. "Don!--needs--help--please!" Donatello stood there for a moment, quiet unsure of what his brother was talking about.

Mikey didn't anything else though, instead he just extended his arms out allowing Don to realize what he had spoke; in his arms was a child and by the looks of it a very injured one. "Mikey take him and put him on the couch Raph get Leo and Master Splinter. This kid needs all the help we can get."

Mikey nodded his head and began to dash towards the couch, Raph moving just as fast to get his brother and Master. Don only needed to take one look at that kid and knew his life was hanging by a _very_ thin thread.


	4. Arrival and Departure

A/N: Just re-uploading this chapter, not too many changes made to it, I just felt I rushed it when I had written it, so I wanted to fix up the chapter a bit. Also be aware that there might be a slight amount of dark–cough-_angst_-cough-in the chapter, but I tried to keep it similar to the 2003 series. Well, enjoy.

TMNT © Rightful Owners

* * *

**04: Arrival & Departure**

Darkness was all he saw, all he _could_ see. Why though? He could hear voices, faint at best but still there. He could hear them yet not react to them. Why? Something was keeping him trapped in this darkness and he did not like it one bit. Couldn't he do something, couldn't he just wake?

"_St..ill...un..no...mo..ng.."_

He could hear the words, as faint as they were he heard them. He wondered who they belonged to.

"_The..wh.a..sup...d.o.?"_

He wished he could understand them, but they the voices sounded off in the distance. He then began to wonder, where was he?

"_No..thi..let..le..v..al..ne.."_

He could hear the voices become fainter, almost as if they were leaving him. Something felt very _off_, he just couldn't figure out why. The voices at this point were faded; no longer could he hear them.

Something was pulling him, the darkness overpowering. The kid tried as he may, could not escape this alone.

* * *

"Don, we can't just leave the kid alone! What if he wakes up and is hungry or gets attacked when we're not here or is--"

"Mikey, _enough!_ He's safe. Nothing can get into this lair, remember I designed it. This kid is still very injured and won't wake for some time, so relax."

"Still--"

"Mikey, knock it off," As if on cue a hand appeared, smacking the back of Mikey's head.

"Ow," he moaned, his hand reaching to rub his now sore head.

"Don's right. This kid still is still unconscious and won't wake up for a while."

"But Leooo--"

"Enough. Was one smack ta yer head not enough or do ya want more?" Raphael was gazing down at his younger brother, seemingly annoyed as his brothers were. Mikey looked at Raph with a sheepish grin, shaking his head side to side.

"Good, now let's leave so's _I_ can get some rest," With that the four brothers left the room, each taking one glance back at the injured kid before heading back into the lair.

* * *

Donatello sat there on the chair, his body aching from being on it for so long.

He had offered to take first shift of watching the kid for the night. Everybody had decided that it would be fair to take turns staying with the child in case he awoke or something happened.

The turtle sighed, leaning back in the chair a bit to try and regain some feeling in his body. He wasn't too sure how to react with the kid.

Mikey had just ran in with him, his body all bruised and battered. He looked like someone had decided to use him as a punching bag.

Donatello had done his best to try and fix the child, but by the looks of it he wasn't going to pull through. Maybe it was just luck, but Master Splinter had been able to turn those odds around, just _slightly._

He had worked with some pressure points and herbs, managing to heal the child.

Don shook his head at this, if Master Splinter hadn't been there then kid may not have been so lucky. Donatello was a genius, a _scientific _genius. He did have some knowledge with medicine but nothing on his master's level. This always made him feel like more of a burden than an asset in those situations, still he was glad that his father had been able to help the child.

Still something was still bothering him. Why was the child injured in the first place? Mikey had explained what happened to the best of his abilities, but it was Mikey, he was never the best at explaining anything.

_Why was this kid even attacked?_ Donatello had pondered over this for some time, yet still no answer came to him. The turtle leaned forward, another breath escaping him. This just seemed too overwhelming at the moment.

Don glanced at the kid, eyeing him for any signs of struggle.

Truth be told he didn't really know how badly injured the child had been. Master Splinter did most of the work, Don only bandaging a few injuries at best. He didn't even know what the kid looked like!

The intelligent turtle seemed to have a lot on his mind at the moment, mostly about the child. He failed to notice a pair of light footsteps enter the room.

"Hey, Don--"

"Gah!" the turtle jumped forward, ready to attack with his bo in hand. He spun around only to lose his fighting stance once he saw who the person was, "M-Mikey?"

"Hey Don, I, uh, thought you needed rest and maybe, I could...you know," The orange turtle gave off a grin, nervously rubbing the back of his head.

Donatello looked over at his brother, studying his expression closely. He couldn't help but smirk when he saw him acting uneasy. He was trying to hide his anxiety, though not with a great deal of effort. Don was able to read him like an open book. He knew Mikey was just worried about the child and he didn't blame him, Don was too.

"Take my turn?" his brother inquired, giving off a look that Mikey knew too well.

"Uh, yeah," Mikey walked up, glancing at his brother.

Don looked pretty tired; he had bags under his eyes and was yawning constantly. Mikey was sure if he hadn't arrived then his brother may have fallen asleep on the chair.

"Well, I suppose I could use some rest, _but_ if anything happens come get me, okay?" Mikey nodded, standing upright as he gave his brother a sailor's salute.

"I won't fail Captain Don," Donatello shook his head, grinning as he muttered a very weary 'goodnight' before disappearing down the hall straight to his room.

Don sighed as he reached his room, setting his Bo staff on the ground as he reached his bed. Mikey would be fine watching the child; after all he was just one big kid himself. Donatello couldn't help but feel a little tense. Mikey would be fine watching the kid...right?

* * *

Mikey stopped watching as his brother departed, his full attention now on the unconscious child. He tip toed around the chair, peering over at the sleeping child. Mikey felt some sort of blame when he saw the child and he didn't even know why. He was unsure why, but he felt that guilt inside paining him.

Mikey gave his head a good shake, trying to rid himself of the thoughts. He took one more glance at the child before turning his attention to the job at hand; guard duty.

He seated himself down on the wooden chair, his eyes wide and open as he watched the kid. A few minutes had passed, nothing too fascinating transpiring.

"_Maannn,_ I thought the kid would wake by now. Come on kid, wake up!" Michelangelo had patience, rare patience, one however that ran dry fast leaving him incredibly bored. The turtle leaned back in the chair, his hands folding behind his head.

He leaned back a little more, his body in a more comfortable position. He opened his mouth, a yawn escaping his lips. The turtle instantly rose as he tried to shake off the on-coming sleep.

"No way, can't sleep...if I do Don'll...Zzzz," Needless to say he fell asleep without much delay, falling off his chair and onto the floor in a matter of minutes. And at the worst of possible times.

* * *

It was still so dark, so sinister. The child had expected to awaken much sooner by the shadows were still keeping a tight hold on him, trapping him inside.

_I need...need to wake up!_

His body struggled, trying to fight darkness with little success. He didn't like it anymore; all he saw was depressing black that he wished to see no longer.

_Why can't I wake...Why?_

His effort was not in vain though; he could hear those same voices. They were speaking and it was much more voluble at this point. _Finally!_

"_...suppose I could use some..."_

"_...won't fail..."_

"_...kid...wake up!"_ That last phrase had struck the child; the words were calling out to him. He knew someone was trying to help him and he needed to come back.

He resisted the shadows even more, his effort doubling every time he heard those words in his mind. He fought back, the dimness slowly fading as he saw the illumination of light. _Finally..._

* * *

"...ugh..." He could see it, glow of light. The thing he longed to witness once more.

The light was somewhat tremendous, his eyes still too weak to gaze upon it. As he rose his hand up to block out the glow, he could feel sharp pain spring through him. It wasn't just his arm that ached, no it was his entire body.

"Ah, why...does it hurt s-so...ah," he struggled to even speak as he pulled himself in a more upright position. His hand clamped the side of his stomach, the tenderest place for him to touch.

_Why...am I in so much pain? _He couldn't quite think straight, his mind was too disarrayed. He decided to try and figure out just where he was. He glanced around the room, his eyes finally settled enough. He could not recognize his surroundings and could also tell he was most definitely not in a hospital.

_If I'm not in a hospital, then __**where**__ am I?_ His question became answered when he heard a loud snoring from below him.

He bent over the bed, blinking at what he saw. Below him was a man, not much taller than himself. Now this man was not human, his body was green and he had a shell on his back. The boy pulled up as quickly as he the creature, his body shaking with fear. _W-What __**is **__that?!_

He decided to look again, just in case he was seeing things. Surely enough though he saw it for real, even felt it too when he poked its cheek, resulting in the creature mumbling something about 'going away' and some fellow named Raph.

The child _should_ have yelled and tried to back away from the creature, key word being _should_, but he didn't_._

Something about the creature seemed familiar to the child though, he couldn't put his finger on it but he just _knew_ he had seen the creature from somewhere before. He sat there staring at the turtle-like creature for a moment longer.

_I need to get out of here and away from that...thing._ Without further haste the child rose to his feet, slowly creeping around the creature as to not disturb his slumber. He paused for a moment, realizing the creature had weapons on him, nunchucks if his memory was correct. _Maybe I should take those._

The boy extended his hand out, slowly tugging on the wooden weapon as he pulled it out. He couldn't help but notice the odd orange bandana the creature wore. Something about that, more specifically _the_ _colour_ was what he found most familiar.

He shook his head, trying to escape his mind of these ridiculous thoughts. He yanked the nunchucks, pausing as the turtle twitched slightly, his body rolling over. _I'm screwed I'm screwed I'm—_The kid became surprised as the turtle waved his hand off in the opposite direction, once again mumbling before returning to his slumber.

The child let a breath he hadn't realized he was holding, the fear slowly easing as he walked past the lizard. He reached what he assumed was a hallway, not too sure where to go but rather following his instinct.

He walked a bit, his body aching all over. He had to ignore the pain though, at least for now. His eyes looked ahead, the odd smell of food overtaking him. _Food, maybe someone human is there._

The child walked a bit of a distance, pausing as he reached the next room. Just as a precaution he grabbed the nunchuck carefully holding it in one hand.

He walked over to what looked like a stove, obviously making the room a kitchen. He could see a plate filled with a steak lying on top of the oven. He leisurely reached to touch the plate when a hand fell onto his shoulder, startling the boy.

"Mikey what do ya think yer doin'--"

"AAAAAaaah!"

_SMACK! _The child instantly dropped the weapon, his eyes widening with fear as he realized what he came to hit was another turtle creature like the one he saw before. He only briefly looked at this one, managing to catch a glimpse at its red bandana.

Fearful that more would come, the child ran out of the room back into the hall. He looked left and right, uncertain of where to go. He stood there panicking, unable to get himself together.

"_GUYS_! **GUYS**! THE KID'S MISSING...AND MY _WEAPONS_ TOO!" The child spun around, that voice he knew it! It was the one that brought his back from the darkness; he needed to see him he could help.

The child ran, his body screaming with pain that he just had to ignore. His feet halted though once he saw the source of the voice. It was...was...

"HEY! Kid, you're okay!" The turtle ran over, hugging the child and catching him slightly off guard. The child stood there for a second, uncertain of what was going on anymore. He just stared at the creature with a hesitant look.

It wasn't until two more of these turtles appeared that the child knew his feeling; fear. He turned his head to gaze at them, a horrified look appearing on his face. He could clearly see a pair of katana held by one and a wooden bo held by the other. Needless to say the child felt a little woozy before collapsing altogether.

"Uh, guys...the kid's passed out...again."


	5. Desperation

A/N: Okay, so I rewrote this chapter again because I suddenly got a new idea for a plot thingy. I was planning on using it before, but wasn't sure how it'd work. Never the less, I got it done. Enjoy.

TMNT © Rightful Owners

* * *

**05: Desperation**

"I still don't understand how you could have fallen asleep," Donatello turned to gaze at his younger brother, sending a look of disbelief in his direction.

"Well, uh…I was tired," the youngest brother gave off a very sheepish grin, nervously rubbing the back of his head as he always did in those situations. Donatello just shook his head at Mikey, knowing it would be better not ask. Leonardo shook his head similarly, not at all impressed by Mikey.

"_Really_, Mikey? _Tired?_ Or were you just _bored_?" Leo crossed his arms, glaring at his baby brother.

"Well…uh…bored?" as Mikey answered that question he would soon regret it. Despite lacking the hot-headed brother Mikey was still smacked. "Oow!" he moaned rubbing his head gingerly, "Leo! What was that for?"

"Mikey you _really_ have to ask?"

"…Yes." Don and Leo both gazed at each other, exchanging identical looks with the same thought in mind. "Mikey, you were irresponsible. You fell asleep and allowed the child to take your weapons and leave without you noticing. Raph is _still_ unconscious and this is all because _you_ decided to take a nap."

Mikey couldn't help but wince at the loud tone his eldest brother took. Leonardo was always one to hold responsibility and honour as his highest principles. And whenever Mikey caused trouble, guess what he had to take? Mikey knew he had to hear one of his brother's 'lectures' and those were never fun.

He gazed around the room, trying to avoid his brother's rath. He paused for a moment as his eyes set upon the kid lying on his bed. The child was sleeping, neither peaceful nor restless just sleeping. Mikey didn't know why but his head lowered a bit. He wasn't too certain why, he just acted upon instinct.

"And another thing…Mikey? Mikey, are you even listening to me!?" At that the younger turtle snapped his head up at his brother, a grin plastered on his face, "Um, yes?" The smile didn't seem too real though, and this was quite odd given Mikey's nature. Leo didn't seem to notice it though and Mikey seemed relieved by that.

Leo just gazed at his brother with a shake of the head, not too certain how to react. The turtle merely shrugged at his brother, turning to face his attention back on the child.

"So, what are we going to do when the kid wakes up again?" Mikey asked, now noticing his brother was also staring at the child. "I don't know Mikey. When he does we'll just have to deal with it somehow."

"Well, when _she_ wakes up we'll have to explain everything," Mikey and Leo turned to face their brother, confusion masking one of their faces, "_She_?"

"Yes, Leo. _She,_" Donatello couldn't help but smile as he saw his brother become quite embarrassed. Mikey was snickering a little, pointing his finger at his brother to add to his shame, "Leo how could you not know the kid was a girl?"

Leo turned to face Mikey, his face red with anger which was odd given he was a turtle. "Me! You called her a _he_!"

"Uh, no bro _you_ did. I found the girl Leo and I'm pretty sure guys don't have long, girly hair," Leo just felt angrier at the scene, this was just as bad as when he exploded the rice from before, "Then again you did blow up rice earlier." Well, speak of the devil.

"That has nothing to do with the ki—girl!"

"Actually, it does." Leo turned to face Don, his face bewildered, "How?!"

"Well, after you destroyed the kitchen we had to send someone get dinner and Mikey went. He found the girl, air go." Mikey was cracking up at this point, it was extremely uncommon for Leo, the leader to act in this manner, and so Mikey couldn't help but laugh.

"Well …uh, you …," Donny just grinned as he patted his brother's shoulder. Leo was at a lost, shaking his head as he tried to become more focused. This was nothing to freak over, it just wasn't. Leo then paused before returning to his normal self.

"Alright, that aside we still do have to figure out how to handle this new problem," Leo stated, turning to glare at Mikey as he continued to chuckle. The turtle had paused when he realized his brother was back in his 'leader' mode. Mikey knew better than to mess with his older brother when he acted this way and immediately stopped his laughter and stood upright, nervously gazing over.

"Well, how will we?"

"I'm not too sure. I think it'd be best if we left her at a nearby hospital, she could just believe she was dreaming and could be probably be given better help than we could provide her," Mikey looked over, his body frozen. How could Leo have said that so easily? Did he really care that little for her?

"No! No way!" Donatello and Leonardo gazed at their brother with odd looks.

"Mikey what's wrong?" Donatello asked as he gazed at his brother with confusion. Mikey looked somewhat angered, which wasn't too odd, but given the circumstances it was. Mikey just sighed, shaking his head, "I don't know Don. I just …We can't just abandon her! It's not right! It's not!"

Something seemed _off; _Mikey had an odd look to him, as if he was desperate for her not to leave. Leo brought his hand down, giving his brother a reassuring look, "We're not going to just ditch her Mikey. I just think she'd be better off with professional help."

"But, but! Leo! She's still hurt and…and…!" Mikey seemed frantic as he gazed at his brother with a total look of disbelief. Something wasn't right about it at all. Don gazed at his two brothers, unsure of how to act with either of them. "Mikey, calm down. I didn't say we were going too, we'll probably just keep her here for now."

"Really?"

"Yes, Mikey. Really."

The orange-clad turtle just stared at his brother with a grand smile, "Right! Now, how are we going to deal with her? Maybe we should get April down here to help?"

"We should. I'll give April a call; hopefully she's not asleep just yet." At that Donatello reached for his shell cell and began dialling April's number. As he waited patiently Leo and Mikey turned to look at the girl again.

"She's pretty out of it. Hopefully she won't wake up soon."

"Well, let's just hope when she does wake up, Raph doesn't."

* * *

Headaches, they were the thing most people dreaded, especially the kind that came right when a person awoke. Now, no _person_ was currently awake in the lair, but a certain _turtle_ was and he had the biggest headache yet.

Raph reached his hand up, gripping his head. The first thing the turtle had noticed when he had awakened was his throbbing head. "Man, what hit me…"

He paused for a moment, trying to recall his events from the previous night. What did he do? He trained most of the day, Leo blew up rice in the kitchen, Mikey left for pizza, Mikey returned without pizza and had some kid instead, and he had made himself some dinner and Mikey had appeared…_Mikey._

"_Mikey,_" Raph growled under his breath, fury replacing his pain. The turtle rose to his feet, his eyes blaring red. One could almost _see_ the steam coming out of his nose.

Raphael exited his room, entering into the large open space of his home. The red-clad turtle paused, listening attentively for the sound of chatter, more specifically Mikey's.

It didn't take very long for Raph to hear Mikey; he was always a noisy turtle.

The turtle stomped down the hall, his wrath intensifying the more he heard that _stupid _laughter. The closer he got the louder and more irritating the laughter became. Raph was surprised he hadn't blown his top the second he came into the hallway.

Soon enough he arrived at the doorway, peering over to seeing his three brothers. Leo facing sideways, looking somewhat annoyed, Don checking on the kid and then there was Mikey. The big oaf had his back turned, laughing at some joke he probably thought was funny but his brothers didn't. Raph couldn't take it anymore, in one step the turtle lunged into his brother, tackling him to the ground in an instant.

This had caused Mikey to become very surprised, the younger brother completely caught off guard. He couldn't help but yell his signature girly scream, crashing into the ground with tons of pain.

"Oooowwww!" Leo turned to gaze over, rushing to see his brothers tussling. Raph was fighting Mikey who obviously didn't want to be fought. "Leo! Don! Come on, help me!"

"All that whinin' gonna do is get ya some more pain!" Don just stood from his spot, glancing over with a sigh. He knew he _knew_ he did not want to become involved in this.

Donatello just shook his head at his brother's antics. When would they stop fighting? He doubted they would ever at this point. While watching his brothers he failed to notice footsteps coming from the hallway. No more quickly had the footsteps started, they stopped. "I just arrived here and you boys are _already_ fighting?"

The four turtles all paused, turning to view a certain redhead woman gazing at them with a disappointed look. Raphael was holding Mikey in a tight headlock when he noticed their friend appear. "April!" Mikey called, glad to see her there. He took that sudden distraction to break free from Raphael's headlock and scramble to safety. Raph felt himself tugged before Mikey broke loose from his grip and ran towards April happily.

Raph just scowled at his brother before rising to his feet, looked like his payback would have to wait a while. At that the three remaining brothers made their way to see an old friend.

All while this was happening, the young girl just laid there motionless. Or at least she appeared to be. In truth the young girl was wide awake, just pretending to be asleep. She had been awake the entire time after fainting, just deciding to fake sleep.

She kept her eyes closed, her chest raising and falling to a steady pace, attempting to keep up with her appearance of slumber. She listened as the four creatures spoke, another new voice joining in. They seemed to be talking about trivial things, but also about her. Normally the girl would have probably been freaking out, but she needed to keep her cool if she was to learn anything about her current whereabouts and situation.

"...so he just found her?" came the low reply of the woman, or at least she sounded like one.

"Yes, we don't know much..." spoke one voice, calm yet still worried.

"Well what can we do?" asked the woman once more, "...can't keep forever..."

"...I know...maybe a ransom..." The girl's ears perked up, the last sentence catching her attention. A ransom, did that mean they had kidnapped her? "..probably high..."

She really didn't know what to think. If they did kidnap her that meant they would keep her here until they got a ransom from her family, but if so why did they save her and heal her injuries? Maybe to keep her around long enough to get the money? She just didn't know. Thoughts fluttered around her mind, her concentration on the whispers becoming harder. She could barely pay attention to their voices, only just barely getting a few words in here and there.

She really wished to know what was going on, but just didn't know anymore. Aside from her thoughts flying around her head, pain was also beginning to become a nuisance. She'd just have to rest for the time being and see what would happen later.

Meanwhile as the girl rested her mind, the brothers were talking to April about their current situation. "So what are you guys going to do now?" questioned April, gazing at the child with intrigue. "To be honest we really don't know," Donatello replied with a slight sigh, "Master Splinter is out getting some more supplies so we don't have him to ask about this at all."

The four brothers just gazed around, trying to think of what to do. Donatello had his arms crossed; his face deep in thought, Leonardo was in a similar position however slightly leaning back. Raphael was scowling, glaring at the wall. He himself had no grasp on how to handle this predicament and was frustrated by it. Mikey was just gazing at the girl with slight sorrow, feeling awful every time he gazed in her direction.

April could see all their expressions, all their worry and uncertainty. She wanted to help, but couldn't think of anything useful that could aid them. The only thing she could offer them was her assistance, which she knew was better than nothing. "Tell you what guys; I'll help by watching the girl for a bit so you can all think on the matter." The turtles turned to April all with faces full of relief.

"Really April? You don't mind do you?"

"Of course not, but promise me one thing."

"What?"

"That you won't stress over this, you still young and shouldn't have to deal with anymore trauma," her word held some truth to them, which each brother knew. The four then nodded at their friend before retreating from the room for a slight break. April just smiled as she saw Raph smack Mikey behind the head; well at least they were still the same. As April turned around to go and watch her newest patient, she was met with sudden pain to the back of her head. In an instant the woman feeling to the floor with a thump.

Guess things weren't so well afterall.


End file.
